From our friends in South Africa we learned recently that the prestigious South African Design Competition was won by a young student who attends the Waldorf School in Sandbaai.

Here's an excerpt from the article in the Hermanus Times: "Winning a nationwide competition must be an impossible dream for most of us, and even more so for two little schoolchildren tucked away in the depths of Zwelihle. Young Nqobile's design was chosen by top designers from Moorcroft above all eight selections - child and adult - and she won the only cash prize, money which was immediately invested in a bank for her future education. The excitement didn't stop there. They were then informed that another pupil from the school had been selected from the four under 16s - and Mbongeni joined the celebrations and limelight. What followed had the two children wide-eyed. They flew to Johannesburg with their teacher, Merle Boshoff, to attend the exclusive, invitation-only charity auction at the Faire. In the glitz and glamour of the evening they were presented with the finished product - their very own designs beautifully tranferred onto Moorcroft vases - the sight of which almost completely overwhelmed them."

Partnership Circle: Inspiring Transformation is an exciting new AWSNA endeavor that has come to fruition this year. The circle was formed in recognition of the need for us all to think holistically about our world. Business visionaries, cultural leaders, financiers, publishers, visionaries, and merchants have all joined with AWSNA to strengthen awareness of principles and practices that lift the evolution of our culture towards a holistic vision of the human being. Our partners are all committed to affecting sustainable change. The change must begin in childhood, in the way we educate our children, and in the practices we model if we wish to have adults able to fulfill this evolutionary vision. The first conferences will be held in September, where we'll meet to strategize our plans on how to strengthen and build the circle. The potential here is remarkable and we are excited to be working together on this.

The International Early Childhood Conference, held in Wilton, New Hampshire, at Pine Hill and High Mowing Schools in August, was attended by 300 early childhood teachers from 33 countries. The content was deep, rich, and right on the mark of the healing view of the human being we hold. News from around the globe is grim, as regulations for developmental benchmarks for three- and four-year-olds clamp down on children everywhere, it seems, except in North America. Much concern was expressed by teachers about the squeezing out of the six-year-olds from kindergartens because of this rushing them forward to academic performance. The whole experience emphasizes the importance of our work together and the urgent need to protect our little ones for strength for their lives. Read moreWhy Waldorf Works

You are also welcome to send us Waldorf--related events for us to post on our web site.

About Us

The Association for Waldorf Schools of North America (AWSNA) is a not-for-profit membership organization that supports independent Waldorf schools, initiatives, and teacher training institutes, and promotes Waldorf education throughout North America.

Waldorf education is a holistic and developmental approach that integrates academic, practical and artistic elements as it addresses the changing needs of the growing child and maturing adolescent. Waldorf schools engage the heart and hands as well as the mind with a lively, experiential curriculum rich in the basics, literature, history, languages, the arts, the social and natural sciences and technology.

AWSNA provides leadership to schools by facilitating resources, networks and research as they strive towards excellence and build healthy school communities. The Association performs functions that its member schools and institutes could not do alone, including outreach and advocacy, accreditation and school support services, professional development activities, research and publications.

Please contact us if you have any questions about AWSNA or this newsletter.